11 Things You Probably Didn't Know About Botswana

Botswana’s tourism industry is surprisingly monopolized and can be tricky to navigate. I’m not exactly sure why—perhaps due to limited resources or logistics—but only certain tour operators seem to offer access to specific destinations or experiences, meaning that if you want to do a particular tour, you may be required to stay at a designated accommodation.

What makes it more complicated is that tour companies usually don’t cross-sell or recommend experiences from other providers. It was definitely challenging to find tours, compare options, and coordinate logistics. This structure can make independent travel planning more complicated and expensive.

Cattle is one of the Botswana’s top exports, and beef plays a crucial role in the national economy, contributing significantly to employment and trade. To protect the exports from diseases like foot-and-mouth, travelers must pass through cattle-cleaning stations on major roads. These involve stepping on disinfectant mats and sometimes dipping your shoes in a sanitizing solution. It’s a routine part of road travel.

Botswana has adopted a low-impact, high-value tourism model aimed at protecting its natural resources. Conservation is deeply embedded in policy, with strict visitor limits in national parks and strong anti-poaching efforts. The country sets a global example for sustainable travel.

Elephants are one of Botswana’s most iconic animals. However, they also create significant challenges for local communities, as they sometimes wander into villages, breaking fences and destroying fields in search of food and water, leading to significant economic losses for farmers.

Sometimes they also damage water infrastructure, like pipelines and wells, which are essential to the communities. These incidents not only create economic strain but also disrupt the daily lives of residents, who rely on these resources for survival. Though the government and park authorities have instituted compensation programs and repair efforts, these solutions do not fully mitigate the long-term impact. For many villagers, the persistent threat of elephants poses a considerable risk to their food security, income, and overall well-being.

Due to intense poaching pressure, rhinos in Botswana are now mostly confined to private reserves or protected sanctuaries like the Khama Rhino Sanctuary. Spotting one in the wild is increasingly rare, and conservation efforts continue to try and protect this critically endangered species.

There’s something about sunsets in Africa that just hit different. If you’ve been lucky enough to witness one, you know exactly what I mean. Funny enough, there is scientific data behind. In many parts of rural Africa, especially in vast open spaces, the air is relatively free of pollutants. This means the sun’s rays aren’t scattered by smog or industrial haze, and you get those deep, unfiltered sunset colors. The wide-open space also gives the sky room to dominate the view.

Africa is also closer to the equator, and because of its latitude, the sun travels a more direct path overhead and sets at a sharper angle. That lower angle in the sky means sunlight has to pass through more of the Earth’s atmosphere—scattering the shorter wavelengths like blue and green, and leaving behind the fiery reds and oranges.

Driving in Botswana can be difficult, especially in rural areas, and specially in rain season. Potholes are everywhere, roads don’t have much lights (if any) outside the cities at night, and both wild and domestic animals frequently cross highways. During the rainy season, flooding can make some roads impassable without a 4×4 vehicle.

In remote areas, electricity and internet access can be unreliable. Storms often cause outages, and many lodges rely on generators and / or solar power. Travelers should download essential information beforehand and prepare to be offline for parts of their trip.

Though Botswana is politically stable, social divisions persist. Racial disparities can still be observed in aspects like language, education access, and economic opportunity. Visitors may notice informal separations in some communities.

In many villages and rural lodges, water is sourced from wells and can have a high salt content. It may feel like showering in seawater, which is interesting to say the least, and is not suitable for drinking. This is particularly common in more remote regions where water treatment options are limited.

While Botswana offers world-class travel experiences, it’s important to understand the complex realities behind the polished safari images. From infrastructure challenges to social dynamics, the country is a mix of extraordinary beauty and day-to-day struggles—and both are worth knowing before you go.